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National Stadium, Singapore
The National Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium, located in Kallang, Singapore. It opened its doors on 30 June 2014, replacing the former National Stadium at the same site, which was closed in 2007 and demolished in 2010. The stadium features a domed roof structure with a retractable roof and configurable seating on the lowest tier to make it the only stadium in the world that is custom designed to host football, rugby, cricket and athletics events. It is also the worlds largest retractable dome.The lowest tier has mechanised and automated retractable seating configurations, allowing the stadium to host concerts and other entertainment purposes at any given point of time. It takes approximately 48 hours to reconfigure seating arrangements to suit an upcoming event. Depending on the seating configurations, the stadium has either a maximum seating capacity of 55,000 for football and rugby, 52,000 for cricket or 50,000 spectators for athletics events/concerts. The stadium is a part of the large multi-purpose Singapore Sports Hub complex which comprises the OCBC Aquatic Centre, the multi-purpose OCBC Arena, the Singapore Sports Museum, the Sports Hub library, the Kallang Wave shopping mall and the current Singapore Indoor Stadium; as well as a Water Sports Centre at the adjacent Kallang Basin. The stadium is also home to the Singapore national football team for their international football matches, making a return here for the first time after four years at the Jalan Besar Stadium since the demolition of the old stadium in 2010.the special roof is made out of insulated metal to reflect sunlight. For the first time since 2006, the National Day Parade, 2016 made its return to the National Stadium on 9 August 2016. Besides the National Day Parade, it is also one of the alternating host venues of the Passing-Out-Parade ceremony for Singapore Armed Forces recruits graduating from the Basic Military Training Centre since September 2015; the other venue being The Float at Marina Bay first held there in October 2010, which is also a venue for the National Day Parade from 2007 to 2009 and 2011 to 2014. History Construction Construction work for the sports hub started in 2010 due to the delays caused by the 2008 financial crisis and soaring construction costs. By September 2011, the pilling and the foundation of the stadium was completed and construction on the steelworks of the stadium fixed roof started. On July 2013, the installation of the stadium final primary steel 'runway truss' for the roof was completed marking the completion of the steelworks on the National Stadium's fixed roof in preparation for installation of the retractable roof. The stadium was set to be completed in April 2014, however, In February 2014, Sports Hub CEO Philippe Collin Delavaud announced that the National Stadium's completion was pushed back to June 2014. Stadium specifics and features Spectator seating "modes" The stadium has configurable spectator tiers depending on the event that will be hosted, namely "Football/Rugby mode", "Cricket mode" and "Athletics mode". To reconfigure from the athletics mode to the football/rugby mode, the lowest spectator tier can be moved 12.5 meters forward, obscuring the athletics running track underneath the seats and thus bringing spectators close to the pitch to provide optimum spectator viewing distances. An energy efficient cooling system is also designed to deliver cooled air to every seat in the stadium while using less than 15 per cent of energy as compared to a conventional air-conditioned stadium, providing every spectator a cool and comfortable time to enjoy an event. Football/Rugby mode Athletics mode vs Selangor FA during the 2016 AFC Cup group stages on 10 May 2016.]] Dome and retractable roof The National Stadium currently holds the record of the largest dome structure in the world. The retractable roof itself will take an approximate 25 minutes to open or close. The roof is made out of a lightweight material called ETFE, which is weather-resistant and blocks the sun's heat giving shade and protecting spectators from the hot and humid Singapore weather during the day and potential torrential rain at any point of time. At night, the retractable roof doubles as a giant projector screen on both sides, which can display images such as the Singapore Flag during the National Day Parade. Stadium pitch Desso GrassMaster was installed as the original grass pitch when the stadium opened. The sandy pitch was criticised by Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri during a pre-season friendly there in August 2014 and resulted in his decision not to field Carlos Tevez due to injury concerns. Afterwards, S$1.5 million of special growth lights were installed to stimulate and speed up the growth of the grass, with one of the main concerns being getting the pitch ready for the 2014 Suzuki Cup at the end of the year. In October 2014, Brazil coach Dunga criticised the state of the pitch, which had not improved much since the Juventus match, when his side were in Singapore to play a friendly against Japan. Although Brazil won the match 4–0, he said after the match that the sandy pitch had prevented his side from playing their best football. Eventually, the grass still failed to grow well and was replaced by the Eclipse Stabilised Turf in May 2015. Transport Mass Rapid Transit The stadium is located above the underground Stadium MRT Station on the Circle Line. Trains arrive every five to six minutes during off-peak hours, and two to three minutes during peak hours and event days. Other MRT stations nearby are Kallang MRT Station which can be accessed using a sheltered walkway, and Mountbatten MRT Station. Both of these stations are within of the stadium. Buses and taxis Bus stops are located around the Sports Hub complex along Stadium Walk, Stadium Boulevard and Nicoll Highway, with buses serving nearby districts and the city. Taxi stands are also conveniently available near the National Stadium, Singapore Indoor Stadium and Leisure Park Kallang. Criticisms Sports Hub is supposed to replace the old National Stadium as a premium location for the high spectator capacity Singapore sports, large scale national events and top entertainment acts, but the operation was marked by some controversies. High costs Plans to host the major sports events at the stadium was scrapped due to high costs of rental. The discussion to hold the NDP 2016 in the stadium was stalled due to cost issues as well. National Day Parade The old National Stadium was demolished to make way for the Sports Hub, which was seen as a possible new location for the future National Day Parades in Singapore. The venue hosted the first NDP in 2016, two years after opening. However, the new location is considered unsuitable due to the SAF Parachute Team is unable to parachute into the stadium due to safety concerns. The dome structure also obstructs the view from the outside, making the traditional military flypast and outdoor fireworks very hard to observe for the stadium spectators. Heavy armoured military vehicles cannot drive spectators as the stadium tracks are not designed to handle them. It is also very expensive for the government to host these parades at the new stadium compared to The Float @ Marina Bay. The most important factor was the cost of renting the stadium. The stadium increased their prices to $30 million in 2016, and in comparison, the fees were downgraded to a cheaper format of $11.6 million in 2017. Holding the NDP at the Sports Hub means there will not be a military air show or fly past. Events The National Stadium hosted the opening ceremony and other events during the 2015 Southeast Asian Games. Other sports events included the World Club 10s Rugby in June 2014, a friendly match between Juventus and a Singapore Selection side in August 2014, which was the first-ever football match at the new stadium. The friendly match between Brazil and Japan in October 2014 is the first-ever sell-out crowd of 55,000 at the stadium. It also hosted the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup in November 2014. It is the venue of all the matches of the 2015 Barclays Asia Trophy that is held in Singapore. The stadium was the venue for the 2016 National Day Parade. From June 2014 onwards, the stadium will also host cricket with day-night One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals matches. There is a prospect of international cricket fixtures and is the possibility of the International Cricket Council moving its headquarters from Dubai to Singapore. Concerts Concerts from international artists are highlighted in light blue. See also * List of stadiums in Singapore * Sport in Singapore References External links *Singapore Sports Council official website *Singapore Sports Hub official website Category:Cricket grounds in Singapore Category:Football venues in Singapore Category:Retractable-roof stadiums Category:Rugby union stadiums in Singapore Category:2014 establishments in Singapore Category:Sports venues completed in 2014 Category:Stadiums under construction